Nearly Half of Seizures in Pill Form Last
Year
NEW
YORK, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The number of
illicit fentanyl seizures by law enforcement in the United States grew by more than 1,700
percent between 2017 and 2023, according to a new analysis.
Further, the share of total fentanyl seizures that involved pills
quadrupled over the same period–with the 115.6 million pills seized
in 2023 representing 49 percent of total seizures.
This is the first time that such up-to-date seizure data has
been published differentiating between fentanyl powder and pills,
says the research team led by experts at NYU Grossman School of
Medicine and the University of
Florida.
Law enforcement drug seizures are used as a proxy for drug
availability or supply, but do not necessarily indicate the
prevalence of illicit drug use. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid up
to 50 times more potent than heroin and involved in approximately
two-thirds of all U.S. overdoses. More than 100,000 people continue
to die from drug overdoses each year.
The findings, published online May
13 in the International Journal of Drug Policy also
indicated that fentanyl seizures varied by U.S. region. Fentanyl
seizures were initially less common in the West; however, by 2023,
the West had the greatest number of all seizures by weight, and 85
percent of all confiscated fentanyl pills. The greatest number of
fentanyl seizures in powder form—which can easily be used to
adulterate other drugs and make them deadlier—was highest in the
South. While the Midwest had fewer fentanyl seizures overall,
researchers saw a particularly noteworthy spike in fentanyl pill
seizures there.
"About half of seized fentanyl is now in pill form, suggesting
that the illicit drug landscape has rapidly changed," said study
lead author Joseph J. Palamar, PhD,
MPH, an associate professor in the Department of Population Health
at NYU Langone Health and deputy director of the National Drug
Early Warning System (NDEWS). "Fentanyl in pill form not only makes
it easier for people to initiate use, but also increases the
chances that people who buy illicit pills could be unintentionally
exposed to fentanyl since it is commonly present in counterfeit
pills pressed to resemble oxycodone, Xanax, or even Adderall."
How the Study was Conducted
Palamar and colleagues analyzed annual trends in seizures of
pills and powders containing fentanyl using data from the High
Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program for the U.S.
overall, as well as by region, from 2017 through 2023. Unlike most
survey data and surveillance systems which can lag by a year or
more, HIDTA data are made available quarterly, which allows for
analysis in almost real time.
The team of investigators measured eight indicators of potential
shifts in illicit fentanyl supply or availability including the
number of total seizures, powder seizures, pill seizures, and the
total weight of seizures. They also looked at the percentage of
pill seizures in comparison to total seizures.
In the U.S. overall between 2017 and 2023, there were 66,303
seizures, with 67.3 percent of fentanyl seizures being in powder
form and 32.7 percent in pill form. The total number of seizures
during that time period increased by more than 1,700 percent.
In 2023, states with the greatest number of seizures included
Florida, Arizona, and California respectively. The highest number of
pill seizures were in Arizona,
Colorado, and New Mexico. The Northeast had the fewest pills
seized in 2023.
The West always had the largest proportion of fentanyl pills
relative to all seizures, most likely to proximity to the Mexican
border, said Palamar, but his team's findings show all regions are
slowly catching up and that pills are dominating much of the
fentanyl market. States with the highest percentage of seizures in
pill form include New Mexico (98.4
percent), Colorado (94.8 percent)
and Wyoming (93.8 percent)
One study limitation identified by Palamar was that due to the
nature of HIDTA data collection, the investigators were unable to
differentiate whether seizures were solely fentanyl, fentanyl
combined with other drugs, or fentanyl analogs (such as
carfentanil, one of the most potent opioids in existence). Even so,
Palamar maintains that detection of any fentanyl in a drug seizure
can be an important indicator for risk of overdose.
In addition to Palamar, co-investigators include Linda B. Cottler, PhD, MPH, and Nicole Fitzgerald at the University of Florida in Gainesville; Thomas H.
Carr, at the University of
Baltimore in Maryland;
senior author Daniel Ciccarone, MD,
MPH, at the University of California, San
Francisco.
Research reported in this publication was supported by the
National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of
Health under grant numbers U01DA051126, T32DA035167, and
R01DA057289. The content of this research is solely the
responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent
the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Media Inquiries:
Sasha
Walek
Sasha.walek@nyulangone.org
917-838-9607
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SOURCE NYU Langone Health System